Israel-Hamas war: Biden warns Netanyahu against Rafah offensive in fresh call
US President Joe Biden meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
United States President Joe Biden held a telephonic conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday (Feb 15), in which he warned the latter against Israel's plan to launch an operation in the Gazancity of Rafah without any concrete plan to ensure the safety of the civilians.
"The President... reiterated his view that a military operation should not proceed without a credible and executable plan for ensuring the safety of and support for the civilians in Rafah," said a readout of the call, released by the White House.
A statement issued by the White House said that the two leaders discussed hostage negotiations, the prospect of an Israeli operation in Rafah and humanitarian conditions in Gaza.
“The president reaffirmed his commitment to working tirelessly to support the release of all hostages as soon as possible, recognising their appalling situation after 132 days in Hamas captivity,” read the statement.
“The president and the prime minister also discussed the situation in Gaza, and the urgency of ensuring that humanitarian assistance is able to get to Palestinian civilians in desperate need,” the White House said.
Biden appeals for safety of civilians second time in a week
This is the second time in a week that the two leaders have discussed the Gaza war. In the earlier call also, Biden had cautionedNetanyahu against moving into the Gaza Strip's southern part without a plan to ensure the safety of nearly one million people who are living there.
On Thursday (Feb 15), the Israeli forces said that the biggest functioning hospital in Gaza has been raided by them. The attack on the hospital came as international pressuremounted on Israel to show some restraint after it vowed to increase its offensive in Rafah, which is seen as the last comparatively safe place in Gaza.
Earlier, Biden had stated that the military response of Israel in the Gaza Strip was "over the top" and expressed grave concern over the increasing civilian death toll in the Palestinian enclave.
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The war started on October 7 when Hamas fighters entered Israel and killed 1,200 people, most of whom were civilians, and took 253 hostages, as per the Israeli government.
Since then, the Gaza Strip has been facing an air and ground offensive by Israel which has killed 28,663 people, most of whom were civilians, as per the health authorities, and displaced more than two million inhabitants.
(With inputs from agencies)